Building at Albion College leveled to create more green space on campus

Katie Rausch | Jackson Citizen PatriotConstruction workers continue to demolish the Gerstacker International House at Albion College.When Albion College students return from semester break next year, they'll discover something missing from campus.

The college's Gerstacker International House, or I-House, which once housed foreign language programs, was razed last week. Demolition began Dec. 14, after the facility had been removed from use this fall. The semester ended Dec. 11.

College officials are planning to build a green space on the site near E. Erie and S. Hannah streets to make the campus more walkable.

"We didn't really explore any other options. We are working to make our campus more pedestrian-friendly. This was an opportunity," said Mike Frandsen, vice president for finance and administration. "The design was such that (the building's) usefulness today was limited. It was at a point in its life where the mechanics needed to be upgraded."

The building dates to 1970, he said, when it was, perhaps, architecturally unique. But estimates to renovate the facility were between $3 million and $4 million, he said.

Ken Kolmodin, associate vice president for facilities, said demolition cost about $128,000, and that $25,000 has been set aside for site restoration.

"Next spring, as weather permits, we'll begin the planning of the garden and those things," he said. "There's no plans to put another building on that site."

The I-House had incorporated a courtyard with a sculpture, which will be replaced somewhere on the green space or near a garden. Foreign language instruction now takes place at Whitehouse Hall.

If college officials could sum up other reasons behind the project in one word, it'd be "sustainability."

It's a concept adopted by the college meant to improve its environmental impact. Community organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity, have been able to sift through the building's materials.

Kolmodin said some internal materials have been salvaged, whereas other materials, such as bricks and metal, are being recycled in outdoor facilities.

"It's become a standard practice," he said. "I think benefits to the community are really, on a larger scale, just keeping materials out of a landfill."

Because other institutions statewide have adopted the concept, Frandsen said the project wasn't meant to set a trend, but more to "do the right thing."

"Sustainability has probably been a priority since before anybody was thinking of it," he said. "The college has looked at what can be reused and recycled before it was fashionable."